This morning I googled "Judah Smith" over coffee and didn't notice any new links since last time, except for those advertising links in the right-hand column. One link is for a conference January 22-24 called Faith Forward, in So. Cal. The site boasts:

Don't miss this unique opportunity to rub shoulders with the most respected and innovative thinkers of our time.

After cleaning up the coffee I SOKB (spit on keyboard), I thumbed through the site, and list of "respected and innovative thinkers of our time" - 6 pages of them. Of course Judah was there, and his bio makes the claim: Judah had 40,000 downloads of a recent message. The bios seemed to have a couple of recurring themes - one being that the church needed to be transformed to be more relevant to our culture, and the other was an emphasis on media. Yawn.

What really caught my eye was the last page of the bio, where 3 of the great gurus will be Robert A. Schuller, Bobby V. Schuller and Robert H. Schuller, listed sequentially.

I also listened to a couple of the sites 1 minute sermons, hosted on Youtube, and somehow clicked my way to one of Judah's clips, which has the following comment:

… I knew Smith as a kid and the only reason he is where he is at today is due to the fact that he had a silver spoon shoved up his ass. When he was a kid he would cry to daddy, I'm sure he still does …

Nepotism; there's the Schullers, Wendell and Judah, Joel Osteen who took over from his daddy, Jim Bakker and his son, etc. I wonder how many people "in ministry" today are there because the Spirit has called and anointed them (Isaiah 61), vs. how many are just taking over the family business? In one of Judah's sermons I reviewed a few months back, Judah repeatedly called his friend an 'idiot' for trying to make his own way in business, rather than going to work for his daddy. Judah argued "(your daddy) will make you a manager".

The Church, shortly after Jesus death, was infected with nepotism. How quickly James, the brother of Jesus rose to power in Jerusalem, offering up his 'opinions', despite the presence / influence of Peter (the rock) and John (the disciple whom Jesus loved), James and John (the sons of thunder) … James the brother of Jesus was not one of the 12 apostles whom Jesus chose (see 1 Corinthians 15:7 and Galatians 1:19) … how did James become so prominent in the Church at Jerusalem, except by nepotism? And where it was "men sent out by James" who began to introduce OT law to the gentiles (Galatians 2:12), could it be that whenever men promote men in ministry, through nepotism, etc., that is when legalism, pharisee yeast, etc., are sewn into the Body, whereby the men chosen and anointed by the Spirit remain faithful to the Spirit and the teachings of the Messiah?

If you want to attend this conference of innovative thinkers, it'll cost you $249. Sounds more like innovative marketeers to me.

Sam

A minister who disclosed that he was gay before Atlanta's oldest Lutheran church hired him as its pastor could now be defrocked for announcing that he has a partner.

The Rev. Bradley Schmeling was chosen in 2000 to lead St. John's, though some expressed concern that his sexuality could threaten its standing with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. But last year, when Schmeling announced that he had found a lifelong companion, the 350-member congregation threw a party for him and his partner.

Bishop Ronald Warren of the denomination's Southeastern Synod, however, asked Schmeling, 44, to resign. When Schmeling refused, Warren started disciplinary proceedings against him for violating church rules barring sex outside of marriage.

http://www.journalnow.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ/MGArticle/WSJ_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149192746444&path=rss 

So if it is a case against fornication, then what is going to be their position if they are forced by the legislature to marry homosexuals in their church, or face anti-discrimination laws?

Ken Hutcherson, senior pastor at Redmond's Antioch Bible Church, filed an initiative Friday to repeal a state law banning discrimination against gays and lesbians.

The law, passed early last year, adds sexual orientation to a state law that bans discrimination based on race, gender, religion and other categories.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003533186_dige20m.html?syndication=rss 

This is going to be interesting. Can a legislature pass a law that forces churches to hire Gays and Lesbians, even if homosexuality is prohibited by that church's teachings? How will the separation of church and state be affected by this?

GREENWICH - The pastor of St. Michael the Archangel Roman Catholic Church resigned after a preliminary financial audit uncovered more than $500,000 in spending that the Bridgeport Diocese is trying to account for, officials said yesterday.

Bridgeport Bishop William Lori told St. Michael's parishioners yesterday that he had asked for and received the resignation of their pastor, the Rev. Michael Moynihan. Though the 54-year-old remains a "priest in good standing," Moynihan likely will never be the pastor of a diocese church again, Lori said.

http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/scn-sa-diocese3jan21,0,6698584.story?track=rss 

It sometimes seems that the recognition of reality is the most difficult task for the people in the church. You will be astounded by the comments from the people defending this man.

ATHENS, Greece - After all these centuries, Zeus may have a few thunderbolts left. A tiny group of worshippers plans a rare ceremony Sunday to honor the ancient Greek gods, at Athens' 1,800-year-old Temple of Olympian Zeus. Greece's Culture Ministry has declared the central Athens site off-limits, but worshippers say they will defy the decision.

"These are our temples and they should be used by followers of our religion," said Doreta Peppa, head of the Athens-based Ellinais, a group campaigning to revive the ancient religion.

"Of course we will go ahead with the event … we will enter the site legally," said Peppa, who calls herself a high priestess of the revived faith. "We will issue a call for peace, who can be opposed to that?"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070119/ap_on_re_eu/greece_ancient_gods

It's about time. Say, does anyone believe that the ruins of the churches of today will be around 2,000 years from now?

THE pastor of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the Republic of Namibia (ELCRN) at Koës yesterday found himself in the dock again - on the second charge of stock theft in less than a month.

Police arrested Rooi on Tuesday for allegedly stealing four goats.

He was granted bail of N$2 500.

The case was postponed until February 22.

Last month, Rooi was charged with allegedly stealing 29 goats from a commercial farmer.

However, he was released after being fined N$300 for transporting livestock without a valid permit.

http://allafrica.com/stories/200701190119.html 

Note the possible prison term, 20 years. If only those terms were handed out to pastor's who get caught stealing in the USA.

The parents of a teenager who was molested by her youth pastor have settled a federal lawsuit against a Yakima church.

The lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Yakima was settled for an undisclosed sum in November, according to court records. Attorneys involved in the case would not discuss the settlement Friday.

The case had been set for trial in April. It was filed a year ago against the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, a nonprofit religious corporation based in California and parent organization of West Valley Foursquare.

Also named as a defendant was William J. Hogan, a former West Valley Foursquare youth pastor, as well as his wife, Heather.

The lawsuit was sealed from the outset by U.S. District Judge Lonny Suko at the request of the church's lawyers.

http://www.yakima-herald.com/page/dis/315464319149496 

Sealed at the church's request. I do have issues with that. I believe that whenever something like this happens, full disclosure should be the rule, not the exception.

Inviting a confrontation with city officials, the senior pastor at a venerable Long Beach church vowed Friday to defy a prosecutor's order that he block homeless people from sleeping on the steps and grounds of his church.

Failure to disperse the 15 to 20 people who camp between the sidewalk and the First Congregational Church of Long Beach's walls may result in a fine of $1,000 a day, Deputy City Prosecutor Sayge Castillo warned in a recent letter.

Leaning back in a couch in his church office Friday, Senior Pastor Jerald Stinson shook his head and said, "The city's threats are ludicrous. We're not going to do what they want us to do. Allowing these people to sleep on our property is, for us, a religious act."

Stinson said his church, a Long Beach historic landmark with a history of social activism, has found legal support for its actions in a federal court ruling that allowed a New York City parish to shelter homeless people outdoors.

In 2002, a federal appeals court upheld the right of Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church in Midtown Manhattan to allow about 20 homeless people to sleep on its steps without fear of being rousted by police.

The three-judge panel determined that the church was helping the needy out of a religious belief and thus protected by the 1st Amendment.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-church20jan20,1,4154052.story?track=rss

This seems to contrast with what many churches do. How nice to see a Pastor who actually associates with the poor and needy, as opposed to building ever-larger edifices to their own egos.

I would like to pose a question for debate:

If Jesus died, paying for the sins of all, how can God justly condemn anyone? Can sin be paid for twice?

This leads me to another question:

When Jesus died on the cross, what sins did he pay for?

1. All sins from all man…thus the whole world receives salvation.
2. Only the sins of a select few…thus leaving salvation up for God to chose who receives it.
3. He did not pay for any sins…thus leaving salvation solely up to us.

"A controversial Kenyan pastor based in London has denied being involved in an international child trafficking ring.

Self-styled Archbishop Gilbert Deya is fighting efforts to extradite him to Kenya following claims he helped infertile women conceive "miracle babies".

Mr Deya claims to have helped infertile women conceive through prayer and says the children are gifts from God.

But British authorities took one of the babies into care after tests revealed its DNA did not match that of either of its parents.

Mr Deya said: "I have been judged by the media as a child trafficker, which is a slave trade. Miracles have happened.

"God has used me and God cannot use a criminal.""

http://www.itv.com/news/9cdb59790fd88b6aa7b19991c5f0a523.html 

Apparently he forgot the criminals on the crosses of Calvary. No matter, I'm sure the donations for the "Miracle Babies" eased his mind.